


I — He — We

by bananasandroses (achuislemochroi)



Series: Whofic [5]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: 4X13 (Journey's End), Angst, F/M, Tenth Doctor Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-08-30
Updated: 2008-08-30
Packaged: 2018-04-04 07:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4129677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/achuislemochroi/pseuds/bananasandroses
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She’d never once thought, for a second, that one day she’d know exactly how it felt to be Sarah Jane.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I — He — We

“All right. Both of you, answer me this.”

If it’s the last thing she’s going to do, she’ll _make_ him say it. He has to, doesn’t he, he _has_ to still love her?

She looks at each of them, one on either side of her – identical in every way except for the colour of the suits they wear – and takes a deep breath. Looking at the man in brown, she asks him a question.

“When I last stood on this beach on the worst day of my life... what was the last thing you said to me? Go on, say it.”

_Oh, please say it. For me?_

“I said, ‘Rose Tyler’”.

 _Do you always have to be this obtuse?_ She wants to shake some sense into him; that’s not what she’s asking him at all, and he knows it.

“Yeah, and how was that sentence going to end?”

“Does it _need_ saying?”

_Cryptic to the end, aren’t you? Why can’t you just **say** it; I can hear it in your voice and read it on your face – is it really so hard to make yourself say three bloody words?_

She looks at him for a moment, saying nothing but thinking plenty, before turning to the man in blue.

“And you, Doctor? What was the end of that sentence?”

The man who is not her Doctor puts a hand on her arm and leans into her. And he whispers it – to save her Doctor’s feelings? She doesn’t know – whispers it so quietly that she almost thinks she’s misheard.

“I — he — _we_ love you.”

When he pulls away, she doesn’t think about how this will look to anybody else. Doesn’t really think at all, but pulls him back down to her by the lapels of his suit and kisses him on the lips. She wraps her arms around him and he does the same to her, returning the kiss. It isn’t until she hears the distinctive click that indicates the TARDIS doors are closing that she realises that she’s been left behind, and she starts towards the ship; he can’t be leaving, can he? Without even saying good-bye?

But the TARDIS is already dematerialising; her chance is already gone, and all she can do is stand numbly on that beach and watch as he does to her what he swore to her he never would.

She’d believed him, back then; had never thought for a second that one day she’d know exactly what it felt like to be Sarah Jane.

She turns towards her mother, ignoring for the present the fact that there’s a man almost identical to the Doctor standing beside her who’s been abandoned too. The pain hurts so much that it mushrooms inside her and pushes everything else out; she can think of nothing else.

“He’s gone. The Doctor’s gone. He’s left me, mum. _He’s left me_ , mum…”

And before either her mother or that man who is not her Doctor can say a word, she dissolves into tears.

“You left me; you promised you wouldn’t but you _left_ me!”

She’s vaguely aware of her mother starting towards her, but the man who is not her Doctor gets there first and pulls her gently into a hug.

“I’m here, Rose. I’m _right_ here. I’ll never leave you again.”


End file.
